Ross joins Optiant from Manna, Inc., where as CEO, he built the start-up into a global company and, in less than three years, captured a tremendous share of the e-CRM market. Prior to Manna, Ross was vice president of sales at Open Market, Inc., where he was instrumental in launching one of the most successful IPOs of 1996. Ross defined Open Market's leadership position with 37 percent global market penetration throughout 30 countries, growing revenues from $1.8 million in 1995 to over $60 million in 1998. Earlier in his career, Ross held executive sales and general management positions at PictureTel Corporation, where he successfully orchestrated dramatic growth with earnings growth from $0.00 to $0.35 and propelled its market cap from $130 million to $1.5 billion. Ross began his career at Digital Equipment Corporation, where he led the PC explosion from an initial market appetite of eighteen thousand units to over one million.
"I have complete confidence in our team and our technology, which will fundamentally change the way corporations leverage their supply chains for competitive advantage," said Ross. "Our roster of blue-chip clients further validates the market imperative for our supply chain design and inventory solutions."
Ross takes the helm from Marcus Ruark, co-founder and CEO, who becomes chief financial officer. Under Ruark's leadership, Optiant received $7 million from Battery Ventures in first-round funding, won major contracts with market leaders in electronics manufacturing and garnered significant industry awards.
"Our solutions provide manufacturers with an unprecedented ability to design supply chains as competitive weapons," said Marcus Ruark, Optiant's co-founder and chief financial officer. "Dan's experience in managing large-scale growth and seizing early market lead will ensure that we continue to deliver best-of-breed inventory realignment and supply chain design solutions."
